The Wedding List
by petals-to-fish
Summary: A first it was amusing how many of Lily's friends were getting married and then it became downright unnerving. What could kids her age possibly know how it felt to be truly, madly, and comfortably in love? In the end, James Potter was going to show her.


**Based on the hilarious and partially true story of my best friend Ena, who collected a list of all her friends and family who got married in 2015. Thanks for the permission to take your hilarious list, our awkward 'single forever' conversations through the years, and a few names off that list to make a jily fanfiction originally intended to be a couple pages...not 23.**

 **Love you like I love fudge.**

* * *

"Owl Post is here!" a voice called cheerfully down the Gryffindor table and hundreds of students looked up as owls flew through the Great Hall of Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Lily Evans looked up from her workbook where she'd been writing five uses for dragon scales and their side effects for her potions assignment. Owl Post was one of her favorite parts of the morning at Hogwarts. Just as all the students were waking up and eating their breakfast, an owl would appear and then behind that owl would be hundreds of others. Owls of every size and color make the air come alive in a flurry of hoots and feathers.

Lily's green eyes find her owl, Josie, amongst the throng of other owls. Josie had been purchased as a sixteenth birthday present by her parents after they realized Lily needed a way to properly communicate with her fellow witches and wizards. Lily had been thrilled to receive the tawny owl as some of her friends were graduating and leaving Hogwarts. Josie was supposed to help Lily keep in touch with friends but Lily found Josie had become a different sort of letter deliverer.

It had started out originally that Lily's Owl Post was the average Sunday paper, maybe a letter from home (always three weeks late thanks to the muggle post office having to process Hogwarts Castle), and an occasional post from her friends graduated from school. Lily remembered the exact day she got the first one, the first sign that things were changing.

It was towards the end of her sixth year and she'd been at breakfast before a really big quidditch match. Normally, Owl Post was slower on these days as friends and family often visited for the final quidditch match. Lily expected the newspaper that landed in her lap but was taken aback by the little slip of grey embellished paper attached to the mail post. Lily disassembled the string holding the newspaper to the grey cardstock and furrowed her brow when she saw what was inscribed above.

 _Save The Date_

 _The Joining of Alex Hamilton and Kari Rusting will be held approximately on June the 1st, 1977 at 4 pm._

 _RSVP +1_

Lily remembered her shock that someone as young as Alex could possibly be engaged. Alex was only eighteen. He'd been in the Slug Club and loved playing wizards chess...and now he was getting married. Lily was surprised anyone close to their age was ready to commit to one person forever.

"Wow, Hamilton?" Sirius Black had peered over her shoulder, staring at the names on the paper, "Bloke picked one fast."

"Yeah." James Potter spoke up from across the table, "Except for the fact that he was dating Kari since third year. They're both practically married already."

Lily had to admit, James had a point. Alex had been dating Kari that long and it only seemed proper that the pair were married. Even still , the same argument could be applied to any of them. Lily had known James and Sirius since they were eleven years old but that didn't give her any right to marry either of them. Not that she wanted to marry Sirius or James. Especially Sirius. Most definitely James.

Lily recalled tucking the slip of grey paper away, surprised but accepting, until she'd received her next save the date for the summer. It started getting weirder from there because then she got her third (and the most shocking) save-the-date of all.

 _Petunia Evans and Vernon Dudley request your presence at their wedding on the 17th of October 1976._

 _RSVP Only_

"Holy shit." She'd dropped her spoon into her bowl of oatmeal and everyone turned their eyes on her.

"Haven't we said not to read the morning paper Lily?" Conner McDougal commented slyly from across the table, "There's nothing in there that's good for you."

"Shut up McDougal," James Potter quickly snapped, "She's not reading the bloody newspaper."

"What is it?" Sasha Pemberly had grabbed the paper from Lily's hands and instantly her tan face dropped, "Seriously Lily? Another one?"

"Another what?" James Potter asked inquisitively.

"My sister's getting married." Lily snapped at the table moodily, grabbing the paper from Sasha and standing up.

Sasha jumped up too, her blue eyes narrowed with worry, "Lily—"

"I have to go write my sister a letter." Lily snarled, interrupting whatever Sasha was going to say, "One that deeply express' my lack of understanding of a marriage to Vernon Bloody Dursley on a date I clearly won't be able to attend."

"I take it he's not a decent bloke?" Sirius Black asked as she stomped past him at the table.

Lily huffed and never answered any of their questions. She'd gone right to her dorm and grabbed the nearest sheet of paper, determined to write her mother, then her sister, and then her mother again. Petunia, Lily's sister, was getting married and no one had the decency to tell her about the engagement? She'd had to find out via owl post? Like she was some outsider to the family?

Lily's sister certainly wasn't a fan of Lily but they were still _sisters_ and Lily bloody deserved to be treated like one.

 _Dear Petunia,_

 _I cannot believe you didn't tell me Vernon proposed to you. I thought we were sisters. I thought…_

She still had the letter tucked away somewhere, never sent, because as soon as she started writing out her feelings she realized it didn't matter that her sister never told her about Vernon's proposal. It didn't matter that Petunia would wear their mothers wedding dress, covered in ribbons and bows down to her toes. The only thing that mattered was the real reason Lily was upset…

Her sister had purposely picked a date she could not attend. Her sister didn't want her to go to her wedding. Lily, in all sixteen years of her life, had never been in love so perhaps she didn't understand but she'd certainly think someone would want their whole family at their wedding. Petunia had made it so that Lily would have to leave school to attend the wedding and Petunia knew how important Hogwarts was too Lily.

Love made people do crazy things and Petunia was determined to keep her sister far away from her perfect life.

Lily hoped that should she ever fall in love—she wouldn't be so blinded.

Sure, she'd seen a couple of boys in her time at Hogwarts…but love…love was a scary thing to a sixteen-year-old girl. Lily imagined love to be something special, something wonderful, and something grown up and beautiful. How could anyone know exactly what love was at seventeen or even at twenty?

Apparently, a lot of Lily's friends knew what love was.

Lily decided by the fifth wedding announcement, for research purposes, to start listing weddings and engagements. She had to see how many people she knew were supposedly in love, when she herself couldn't even figure out what love was.

Lily sat in her common area late at night after rounds with the Head Boy. The fireside was still burning bright so she sat in front of the glowing heat source with a quill and paper, scratching down the names she already knew.

1\. _Alex Hamilton and Kari Rusting_

2\. _Jill Dunn and Phil Maude_

3\. _Petunia Evans and Vernon Dursley_

4\. _Kate VanMeter and Conner Dougless_

5\. _Frank Longbottom and Alice Rogers_

"What are you doing up?"

Lily looked up from her wedding list to see her best friend Sasha yawning as she came into the common room. Sasha's hair was a mess on the top of her head and she had the red imprint of a book on her left cheek.

Lily narrowed her eyes at her friend, chastising flippantly, "I should ask you the same. Out snogging a boyfriend perhaps?"

"Snogging a book actually. I fell asleep in the library." Sasha admitted with a smile, falling into the couch cushions next to Lily, "Not as riveting a story as you were probably hoping for, but the book was quite as good a pillow as any bloke's chest."

Lily grinned at her friend and winked, "It's a wonder you're still single."

Sasha laughed as she stretched her arms out, "can't find many boys in the library stacks."

Lily hummed in agreement before glancing down at her parchment again. Sasha looked down too and saw the paper. Sasha grabbed it before Lily could hide it and stared at it, quite amused.

"Making a hit list?" Sasha asked, "Glad to see I'm not on it."

"Stop it," Lily snatched the paper back and bumped shoulders with Sasha, "It's not a hit list—it's a wedding list."  
Sasha's brown eyebrows lifted to her hairline, "Planning a wedding?"

"A wedding list." Lily explained, "I'm going to write down how many weddings happen in the next year."

"We're sixteen years old." Sasha exhaled deeply, seeming amused by Lily's list.

"I'm counting engagements." Lily stuck her tongue out at her friend, "I want to see just how many of our friends end up married with kids by the time we're legal."

Sasha snorted, "Okay, well, speaking for the people with poor impulse control, you might get one or two more couples on that list."

A male voice entered the conversation. "Did someone say poor impulse control? Because I definitely need to discuss mine."

Sasha and Lily craned their necks around the couch just as James Potter leaped over the back of the couch and landed in between Lily and Sasha. James' black hair was ruffled greatly, like he'd just climbed out of bed, and he wore an old quidditch shirt paired with ugly plaid pajama bottoms. He was clutching his stomach like a girl experiencing period cramps and had his hazel eyes clamped shut.

Lily laughed at his all-but-serious expression at Sasha, "What's wrong with you?"

"So impulse control, I have none." He said through clenched teeth.

Sasha poked his cheek with one of her fingers, "You look pale, Potter."

"Will I die?" he asked Sasha dramatically.

"She can't tell you that if she doesn't know what you did." Lily commented, crossing her legs and staring at the back of James' head as he bent forward moaning.

James turned his face so he could grin hastily at Lily, "I ate an entire box of Bertie's Every Flavour Beans."

Lily pulled a horrified face, "James you didn't."

"The whole box." James swore with his hand up like he was preparing an oath, "In three minutes."

"That's sugar suicide Potter." Sasha shook her head but she was fighting a smile similar to Lily's own grin.

"I'm Scottish." James rebuked as if that made him able to hold back a sugar hangover, "It was a snack."

"You'll be sweating sugar." Lily laughed, nudging him with her hand so he had to turn and look at her again.

James shrugged, "Why do you think I'm not asleep? I'm sicker than a dog."

"Don't throw up." Sasha teased, "The house elves won't thank you."

"I won't thank you." Lily added, "These are my good robes."

Lily and Sasha laughed at the same time causing James to grin gleefully at her joke. James slowly got up, still clutching his stomach.

"Well then, I'll see you two lovely girls later."

Lily rolled her eyes, "Where are you going sugar-high?" she half demanded, "It's past curfew."

"I'm actually on my way to the kitchens." James was blocking the fireplace so the air around them became chillier, "There's an elf down there that makes great mint tea that I'm going to be needing considering my stomach feels like it's twisted inside out."

"That's what happens when you eat an entire box of straight up sugar." Lily said.

Sasha stared up at James, wrinkling her nose, "You're right though Potter," she told him, "Your impulse control needs some work."

"At least he's not married." Lily muttered with a snort.

James laughed and stared at Lily curiously, "Yeah, I guess that's always a positive, isn't it Evans?" and then he winked and slipped out of the common room.

Sasha waited a moment after he'd gone and then turned to Lily with an upturned eyebrow, "Shouldn't you stop him? You're a prefect."

"I think he'll being going through enough punishment tonight without me adding a detention to that list." Lily laughed, reaching over to grab her wedding list from a bemused Sasha, "Now let's go to bed. I've got to be up early for Care of Magical Creatures."

"You know what?" Sasha asked as the pair walked up to their dorm side by side.

"Hm?" Lily folded up her wedding list and tucked it inside her pocket for later.

Sasha pushed open the door to their quiet dorm, where all their friends were already sleeping soundly, "My New Years Resolution was to find a proper boyfriend who can snog me in the book stacks and I've yet to find a bloke up to the challenge."

"Any bloke at Hogwarts you have in mind?" Lily grinned at her friend.

"Whichever boy is the richest, so I guess I'll have to start with James Potter."

Lily and Sasha laughed quietly as they got ready for bed. Lily pulled her wedding list from her pocket and tucked it into her workbook for safekeeping. Sasha might think it was silly of her to keep tally of the weddings and engagements but Lily was determined to see just how many people her age had figured out love.

In Hogwarts, romance was elementary. Snogging in the tapestry shadows was considered romantic. Shagging in the boys dorms was a regular occurrence through the rumor mill. Even Lily had been caught up in valentine affairs where cards were exchanged between crushes.

But love?

Lily didn't believe kids their age could be in love.

Wedding Invitation numbers 6, 7, and 8 on her list happened when Lily's mother wrote her about Petunia's social meet and greets with the other engaged couples in the neighborhood. 9 and 10 were collected while meeting up with Alice Rogers to discuss her summer wedding details in Hogsmede.

11\. _Ingrid Stephans and Albert Stevens_

12\. _Emmaline Lee and Eddie Vance_

Lily wrote down the names with increasing reality that the world outside of Hogwarts was growing fast and Lily wasn't sure she'd be able to catch up when she finally graduated.

By lucky 13, Lily was certain she had to be imagining the letter attached to a card from Marlene McKinnon. Lily stared at the flowery stationary in disbelief. Sasha clucked her tongue when she saw the name and ate her kippers in silence. Marlene was only 17 years old.

"Morning Lily." James Potter fell into the chair next to her, pulling a plate of bacon towards them.

"Morning." Lily swiftly replied, staring at Marlene's name in depression.

"McKinnon's engaged?" James nosily read over her shoulder, "That's surprising. She always seemed like the Auror sort."

"Aurors can be in relationships." Lily argued defensively, "Alice Rogers is marrying Frank Longbottom this summer."

"I know." He grinned, "I got the invitation." He bit into a piece of bacon and chewed thoughtfully, "But they're both Aurors. Who's McKinnon marrying?"

Lily looked at the name of Marlene's beau and realized she didn't recognize the name at all, "I don't know."

"Well, hopefully he knows what he's getting himself into?"

"Marlene's a lovely per—"

"Not her Evans." James rolled his eyes at Lily, earning a look of mirth from her, "What I mean is—auror work is dangerous, especially now with Death Eaters and shit like that. McKinnon could easily get murdered and where does that leave her husband?"

Lily stared at James, who was normally so positive and endearing, in shock, "Well you woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning." She muttered, tucking her hair behind her ear and turning back to her food and Marlene's announcement.

James sighed, seeming to realize he was being absurd, "I'm sorry Evans." He smiled at her endearingly, "I was up late complaining to Remus about how bitterly unfair life is."

"Awh," she laughed at his sour expression, placing a hand on his shoulder and mocking him, "What's got your knickers in a bunch?"

James stuck his tongue out at her but complied to her question, "Well, Evans, if you must know…I went on a horrid date last night with Elena from Ravenclaw."

"Elena Braxly?" Lily laughed at the thought of a small sixth year girl who had less brains and more curves.

Sasha perked up in interest, "I assume horrid means you won't be seeing her again?"

James curved his eyebrow at Sasha, "You assume correctly." He sighed, "She was the most boring person I've ever talked too."

"Poor wee lamb." Lily cooed, brushing his messy hair back from his forehead and laughing when he brushed her hand away grouchily.

"Evans, it's no joke. Elena spent _thirty minutes_ talking about an article on cuticles in Witch Weekly." James bemoaned, "Cuticles."

"I'll remember to leave them out of the conversation then." Lily grinned at Sasha when James wasn't looking and Sasha looked just as entertained as Lily.

James opened one eye to look at Lily with distress, "Why do girls make everything so difficult?"

Lily didn't have an answer because she was wondering that exact same thing about boys. If James hadn't liked hearing about cuticles why didn't he say anything to Elena so she could change the subject? And if Elena was nervous why didn't she just tell James so instead of ranting about bloody fingernails?

Sasha was the one who finally answered James' question, "The same reason boys make everything so difficult." She inhaled deeply as she grabbed a newspaper laying in the middle of the table, "We're all stupid in love."

"Love is stupid." James answered, shoving a biscuit into his mouth.

"You're both perfectly wonderful to share breakfast with this morning." Lily said sarcastically but Sasha and James ignored her.

Lily's sixth year at Hogwarts came to an end quickly and the dreaded summer wedding season started. Lily got home and immediately attended two weddings with her family only to turn around and attend the wedding of a friend from school three days after. While the wedding with her parents was bearable because she had someone there that she knew, the current wedding she was attending happened to be the most boring wedding she'd _ever_ attended. The minister was going on and on, it had been at least an hour already. The old lady next to Lily smelled like cats and gin. The combination was making Lily wish she'd chosen her seat next to the family with five kids instead.

Lily glanced at her watch for the second time and the old aunt with greying hair beside her clucked her tongue disapprovingly. Lily glanced at the old woman and lowered her arm dramatically, biting her tongue so she wouldn't misspeak.

"So, how many sickles do you want to bet that the bridesmaid is fucking the groomsman?"

Lily turned, ready to reprimand the stranger who whispered inappropriately from behind her in the pew but when she turned and saw familiar playful hazel eyes she almost sighed in relief.

"James!" She was so delighted to see someone she recognized she didn't care that the old woman shushed her loudly, "what are you doing here?"

The wheezy old aunt stole Lily a disgraced glare at the whispering and Lily quickly stood up from her pew and snuck behind to sit next to James and a snoring old man. Ahead, the bride and groom were still locked in the painfully long ceremony.

"Which do you know, the bride or the groom?" James asked as she settled into the seat beside him.

Lily chuckled, "The bride, you?"

"The groom played quidditch with me in the summers." James whispered into her ear, "I always beat him."

Lily rolled her eyes at his boasting, "Of course you did. I'm sure he invited you here to deflate his ego on the biggest day of his life."

James was staring straight ahead but he was laughing, because his shoulder shook, "I was invited because my parents were close friends with his parents."

Lily smirked, "Tough break."

"So who is old Tommy marrying?" James asked, "She's rather pretty."

"She was Head Girl in our fifth year."

"Ah, I remember. Caught me running stark naked through the third floor at midnight once." James' breath ticked her ear and she stifled a laugh into her hand.

"You're lying."

"Wish I was." James answered with a devilish smirk, "But the memory is burned in my mind probably as much as hers."

Lily elbowed him lightheartedly; "I'd say stay out of her sight today."

James grinned, "I know when to stay out of trouble."

"I don't think you're as much trouble as you make it out to seem." Lily nudged him again, this time with her foot.

"I'm more trouble than you know, Evans." James said solemnly.

"Says the bloke who got _personally_ thanked by Dumbledore at the end of term for breaking up the riot on the third floor." Lily glanced sideways to see that he was flushing red on his ears.

James brushed her compliments aside, "it wasn't anything special."

Lily knew he was lying. He'd received an award for special services to the school; she'd heard his mates taking the mickey out on him for it.

After what seemed like an eternity the vows were done and the couple kissed. Bells rang and rice was thrown dramatically. James seemed to be having fun at her side, pelting little things of rice at the old aunt who had been glaring at Lily during the service. Lily pretended not to notice but her smile was wider than the bride's smile when James shot a handful of dry rice right into the old lady's mouth.

By the time the car drive off with the happy couple inside, Lily had almost forgotten she'd planned to leave as soon as she could. Her poor mother was probably wondering what kept her.

"Damn," she cursed when she saw the clock on the tower of the church, "I'm late."

"Got a hot date?" James asked, using the rest of his bag of rice to throw piece by piece onto the ground, creating a trail as the pair walked away from the church.

"No," Lily pulled at her red hair, "fresh out of hot dates today."

"That's unfortunate." James commented slyly, "I'd check the market tomorrow, I hear they go on sale."

"You have experience with cheap dates?" she grinned at the boy so amusing with his words.

"The cheapest."

Lily laughed out loud and was quite sad to see they'd already made it to the bus stop. She rather liked the surprise of James Potter at this wedding and wished it wouldn't be weird to invite him to all the future weddings she'd have to attend. Lily became somber as she remembered she had another wedding to go to in just three weeks.

James waved a hand in front of her face, "You look upset."

Lily tried to brush his concern off, "I'm fine. I don't get upset."

James laughed out loud and pushed her ever so slightly so she rocked on her toes, "whatever Evans, I've seen you cry in Potions when we have to cut the baby mice for our brews."

Lily looked at him, horrified at the mention of the baby mice they often used in Potions class, "because we don't just _cut_ them James!" And he laughed at her dramatic exclamation, "we decapitate them! How would _you_ like to be decapitated?!"

"Nearly Headless Nick appears to be getting along just fine." James mentioned Gryffindor's resident house ghost, who had been killed by way of an ax to the neck.

"He's dead James." Lily displayed lack of amusement at his joke; "you are not _getting along fine_ if you're dead."

James just snickered again and ruffled his hair, "alright, I'll stop teasing." He declared, "I gotta go anyways. I'm meeting Sirius and Peter at Diagonal Alley."

"Back to school shopping already?" She asked with interest, "it's hardly July."

"There's a new broom out actually. The clean-"

"Sweep '78" Lily finished for him and he looked impressed, "I saw it in the paper." She confessed her interest, "it looks amazing."

James nodded, eyes lighting up at the new topic, "I want it _really_ badly but my mum is adamant that my other broom works just fine."

Lily snorted, "Is that the first time you've been turned down in your entire life?" She badgered him cheerfully.

"Actually," he grinned back, "I'm rather used to it by now, I've had lots of practice with woman telling me no." as she laughed he continued, "Now, Sirius, if you tell him no he throws a fit." And then he winked, saluted her, and apparated on the spot.

With a smile on her lips, Lily shook her head before sitting and waiting for the bus home. It took two hours to get home after an accident on the freeway and Lily wished she had mastered apparating like James evidently had. Lily wondered how he got around the trace that made it so the Ministry was notified of underage wizardry outside of Hogwarts. As she entered the kitchen where her mum sat eating dinner, she noticed Petunia was missing.

"Some mail arrived with Josie." Her mother passed Lily a stack of letters as she passed to the oven for food.

Lily sighed grumpily. There were three more wedding invitations, this time from people who had just graduated from Hogwarts just two months before.

"What's wrong Lily?" her mum asked.

"I'll be right back." Lily told her mother, "I need to go write something down."

Lily entered the room she and her sister had shared their entire life. Peutnia's side of the room was spotless where Lily's side was covered in various items. Lily got on the floor and pulled her school trunk out from under her bed. Lily dug into her drawer and pulled out a fountain pen and her ever-expanding wedding list.

14\. _Amanda Stone and Victor Jacks_

15\. _Ben Seinfeld and Michelle Nueces_

16\. _Christine White and George Dawson_

Lily sighed as she looked at the names of friends who had graduated from Hogwarts only two months before. They were just kids—kids like Lily—rushing into the adult world and marrying each other.

Sixteen weddings announcements and it hasn't even been a full year.

As Lily's summer drew to the close Lily was officially at twenty-four weddings and engagements. Twenty-four happy couples who had apparently found their one true love. Twenty-four people who went to sleep and woke up each morning just thinking about the person they'd chosen to spend forever with.

Lily couldn't imagine spending forever with anyone because forever was a long, long time. Sasha told Lily she really needed a new hobby when she stopped by and saw Lily's list. Lily told Sasha to bugger off and go snog another book.

Frank and Alice Longbottom's wedding at the end of the summer was the most lavish so far and the only reason Lily had even gotten an invitation to the reception was because Alice and Lily had known each other through the Potions professor at Hogwarts. Alice and Lily were fast friends but Lily found that Alice and Frank had invited many people from their world: the adult world.

Lily wore a pretty soft pink dress to their reception, expecting only to spend an hour tops at the party. Alice thanked her profusely for coming and was so adorable as she hung on for dear life to her new husband Frank. Lily didn't know Frank, she only knew of him. He was an Auror and looked tough and rough around the edges-but for sweet Alive he seemed perfect because he never took his adoring eyes off of her.

It was while signing the guestbook that she spotted a name she recognized scratched roughly on the paper. Lily couldn't believe her luck at the two words _James_ and _Potter_ on the parchment.

Immediately, Lily set out to find her schoolmate, determined to make this outing not all for naught. If she had to spend some time here celebrating Alice and Frank's impending adulthood, she was going to do it with the only person she knew who could make a wedding fun.

She spotted James Potter easily among a throng of men dressed smartly in dress robes. Despite also being dressed in fancy robes, James looked like a boy next to the men. He was chatting with one man quite seriously and Lily noticed how dapper he looked in his dress robes and golden tie. Lily paused her steps to consider that James might not want Lily to interrupt, seeing as he was hanging with what looked like important blokes but then James spotted her and waved like a lunatic.

"Evans!" He shouted unthinkingly, "Get over here!"

Shy, now that everyone within earshot turned to look at her, Lily stepped towards James carefully.

"I was going to grab a drink," Lily noted the spirited look on James' compassionate face, "Want to join me?"

Lily was about to agree to a drink with James when James' companion stepped in with a toothy sneer and bad breath.

"Well aren't you just as pretty as can be." James' friend in a red tie spoke boisterously, eyeing Lily up and down like a piece of meat at the store.

Lily flushed even more and shot a look at James for help. Sensing her dire discomfort, James stepped in and put a protective (and appreciated) arm around her waist.

"Al this is my girl, Lily."

Al looked extremely disappointed that James had claimed Lily as his own and said, "What good is crashing a wedding if all the pretty girls are already being shagged?"

Lily's fake smile dropped radically and James coughed into his hand, likely covering an unfortunate laugh.

James began pulling at her waist, tugging her away, "I'm sure there's someone out there for you Al."

"Not at this wedding." Al said irately.

Lily retorted sickeningly sweet, "Have you tried checking near the loo?"

James couldn't control the laughter he'd been hiding behind his hand. He burst into laughter so loud that as he was dragging her away from Al, the other men stared in bewilderment.

"I think he's still scratching his head!" James beamed at her, letting go of her waist as they walked to the hallway outside of the reception room.

"Who the hell was he?" Lily still felt Al's creepy eyes on her, despite being far away from him.

"He's an Auror like Frank." James scanned their surroundings until he found the path he was looking for.

"He shouldn't be an Auror!" Lily said crossly, "He's disgusting!"

James snorted as he led them to an open bar, "Lily, Auror Academy only requires that you only be good with a wand, not good with hygiene."

Lily scoffed, "I bet I could out duel that pig any day."

"And I wouldn't bet against you." James grinned, pulling out a chair at the bar for her to sit on before he sat down himself.

Lily straightened out her dress and put her elbows on the bar top as she watched James fish for money in his pocket and order them both a butterbeer. Lily happily took his offered drink, feeling quite in need of something wholesome.

James cleared his throat as she drank, "so, I got an owl yesterday from Dumbledore."

Lily lowered the bottle from her mouth to look at him concerned.

"Yeah?" she tilted her head impishly, "Awarded another Special Services to the School?"

James leaned forward with a twinkle in his hazel eyes, "can you keep a secret?"

"You were finally expelled?" She provoked him, poking his side.

James tilted his bottle and smiled like he knew she was going to love whatever he had to say, "Evans, I got Head Boy."

Lily stared at James in astonishment before getting a grip and putting down her bottle so she could wrap her arms around his neck and pull him into a congratulatory hug. He chuckled into her hair and hugged her back; his bottle resting on her back and sending chills up her spine.

"James!" She squealed into his ear, never minding the fact that if James was Head Boy then that meant they've picked a Head Girl-and she didn't get it.

James pulled away and winked at her, "I'd say I need tips from a pro like you, but you're right, I _did_ just win an award..."

"The Head Girl will make sure the transition is easy." Lily assured him, putting her head down when she saw the look of confusion on his face.

"You mean you didn't-"

Lily smiled sadly and shrugged her shoulders, "I guess they found someone better qualified."

"That's shit." James faintly spoke and then complained more heatedly, "it's your spot, and everyone in the school knows it's yours. You bloody earned it."

Lily blushed frantically at his praises, "I guess we'll see but all I've gotten in the mail is more wedding invitations."

" _More_?" He snickered at her tone, "Your friends are quite busy aren't they?"

Lily sighed and put her elbows on the bar top again, "I'm one hundred percent sure that if I took a shot of firewhisky for each of them I'd get alcohol poisoning and end up in the Hospital."

"You need a vacation." He nudged her foot with his foot, "You've gone mental."

"The world has gone mental, I just have to live in it." She retorted.

He raised his bottle at her, "I can drink to that."

Lily eventually bade her goodbye to James, wished the happy couple well, and made her way home. It was late by the time she'd said goodbye to James, as she'd gotten lost in some of his hilarious stories. Lily was thankful she'd managed to track him down at the wedding.

"How was the wedding dear?" her mum asked as she entered the living room where the television was switched to the news.

"Fine." Lily said simply.

"You stayed longer than you said you would." Her mum turned the TV off, "Did you have fun?"

"I ran into a friend from school." Lily smiled and sat down beside her mother on the couch, "It was nice."

"That's good dear," her mother kissed her forehead, "I worry about you sometimes, you know."

Lily smiled and brushed her mums shoulders, "Don't worry about me."

"You spend months away at a magical school and come home quieter and quieter." Her mother sighed, "I can't help but worry."

Lily bit her lip and hugged her mother, not bothering to worry her with the struggles she faced at school with people who believed Lily deserved to have her wand snapped. Lily's mother wouldn't understand that some witches and wizards hated muggles more than anything else on earth. Lily hardly spoke about her time at school with her mum for fear of letting something slip.

She didn't want her mum to worry about her. Hogwarts was quite safe after all; it was the world outside of Hogwarts that was unreliable.

The next morning Lily sat at the breakfast table when her owl Josie appeared with three letters.

"Josie." Lily fussed over her tawny owl, taking the letters from her talons, "Thank you." She fed Josie some bacon before the bird flew off so that Petunia wouldn't throw a shoe at her (the bird had long since learned to avoid the house).

The first two correspondences were wedding invitations (numbers twenty six and twenty seven) and the third letter made Lily's heart pound in her chest. The Hogwarts seal broke as Lily hastily tore the yellowed envelope open. A shiny golden badge fell onto her lap and Lily squealed with excitement.

She'd gotten Head Girl.

Lily proudly wore the pin to Kings Cross on the first day of term. After Lily had properly said goodbye to her mother (and promised to try and make it to petunia's upcoming wedding) she made her way to the train that would take her back to Hogwarts. Sasha ended up congratulating Lily on first sight by screaming and jumping on her with a giant hug. Lily laughed and joined her best friend in on the jumping and squealing.

"I knew it, I knew it!" Sasha roared smugly, "Lily Evans, Head Girl!"

"Congratulations Lily."

The girls broke apart and Lily was surprised to see James smiling at them both warmly. Lily's smile couldn't get any broader from the moment when she saw him.

"James!" she exclaimed with a quick laugh and she jumped at him, wrapping her arms around his neck, "I got it!"

James laughed and hugged her back, seeming dazed at her affection, "Of course you did." He pushed her away and winked at her, "Dream Team eh?" he rose his hand and she high fived him with a glowing smile.

Sasha looked back and forth between them with raised eyebrows. Lily glanced back at her best friend and grinned, expecting Sasha to join in on their party but Sasha was too busy looking back and forth between James and Lily. James seemed to notice Sasha's weird looked because he backed away slowly.

"I'll see you in the Prefect compartment Lily."

James waved goodbye at the pair and Sasha snatched Lily's arm up like she'd been waiting to do so forever.

"What was _that_?" Sasha insisted.

"What?" Lily asked as she parked her trunk and owl in front of the train for loading.

"You. And Potter." Sasha hissed, "Flirting."

Lily rolled her eyes at Sasha as they walked onto the train together, "We weren't flirting."

"I know flirting." Sasha retorted, "I've read a thousand books on it, and _that_ was flirting. Shameless, pure, first-year flirting."

"I wasn't—" but Lily stopped at Sasha's disbelieving scowl, "Oh never mind, I have to go to the Prefects compartment."

Sasha laughed wickedly as Lily backed away blushing, "Merlin, you complain about all these weddings Evans…but yours is next."

Lily glared at Sasha and sent her a rude hand gesture, Sasha just laughed and waved as Lily walked to the Prefects Compartment.

James was already there talking to the new Prefects. With Sasha's implications in her head, Lily strayed far from the Head Boy as they mingled with the prefects. Remus Lupin, James' good friend, was at James' side keeping him preoccupied. It helped so that Lily could focus on meeting the new recruits and socializing.

Eventually the new prefects filed out to go find their friends and Lily ran out of distractions. James smiled at Lily from across the room from where he spoke with Remus and a young Ravenclaw. Lily felt her heart jump to her throat. Remus luckily intervened before Lily could blush and embarrass herself.

"How was your summer Lily?" Remus asked.

"Good, just one wedding invitation after another." Lily joked bitterly.

Remus nodded and chuckled as if sharing a private joke with himself, "James mentioned he saw you at Frank and Alice's wedding."

James smiled at the floor and shoved his hands into his pockets, "Yeah, it was great."

"I hate to leave," Remus then said swiftly, "But I told Sirius I'd help nick money from Peter for sweets from the cart, so I must be off."

Lily and James moved towards the door with Remus and stopped immediately when they were about to run into each other. Lily brushed back her hair at the same time that James ruffled his. They looked at each other and then looked away quickly. They sat in silence for a few more moments before James spoke to her.

"You sounded upset about those wedding invitations."

"Do I sound upset?" she picked at her robes, "I can't imagine why, after getting twenty eight invitations in the past six months."

James stared at her flabbergasted, " _twenty eight_." He confirmed.

She nodded and finally looked up at him with a smile, "I wasn't kidding about alcohol poisoning at Alice and Frank's wedding."

James leaned into her space more, "How do you know it's twenty eight invitations?"

"I've kept a list." She disclosed, "A long list."

"A list." James looked very entertained by this fact.

"A wedding list." She described, "My last addition was Addie Crimshaw and Jacob Anderson, getting married next year."

James whistled, "Damn, so when my mother complained that everyone my age was settling down with the right girl…" He leaned up against the compartment door and stared down at her in shock.

The tension had all but disappeared between them and Lily found herself feeding off his energy.

"Your mother was telling the truth." Lily sighed, leaning beside him, "All our friends are getting married and having babies."

James chuckled, "You keeping count of the children too?"

"I might as well." Lily grunted, "I want to try and figure out why everyone is in such a hurry to grow up."

"Isn't it obvious?"

Lily looked up and saw his eyes were practically smoldering down at her. She wondered why she'd never noticed how handsome he'd gotten in the past seven years. Sometimes when she looked at him she only remembered the little scrawny boy in glasses praying to be sorted into Gryffindor. He still looked like a boy but with his current solemn face she could also see a man she might like to see more of. He was refined, held himself a bit higher, and gave off a sense of security.

"Outside of the sanctuary of Hogwarts—the world is a scary place—the faster we grow up the more prepared we are to handle it." James justified the actions of those who had just been married.

Lily raised her eyebrow at him, "Are you like them?"

"Me?" he shook his head softly and as his expression became playful she lost sight of the man as the boy returned, "I'm determined to never grow up." He pulled away from her and sent her a salute, "Gonna see if I go steal some candy from the boys."

"Bye." She stepped forward so he could go through the compartment door and walk quickly away from her.

In that moment Lily Evans knew the fast beating of her heart was something other than the truth to James' words. Sasha was _right_ —Lily fancied him. How had it happened? She wasn't sure; perhaps it was when they spent time at the weddings together. Perhaps it was before that, when they'd eat breakfast together in the Great Hall and tease each other like old friends. Or perhaps she'd always fancied him, and she was starting to realize it because she was growing up.

October came swiftly and Lily was still debating attending Petunia's wedding. In the end it was James who convinced her to do so after she'd fretfully told him how she felt abandoned by her sister. He convinced her she could handle it and prove maturity above her sister. The extra plus was that he also offered to accompany her.

So on October 17th Lily got up early, put on a beautiful flowery dress, and met James Potter in their common room to make the 8am Knight Bus in Hogsmede. As she descended the stairs he stared adoringly from below in awe.

"You look gorgeous." He told her, offering her his arm.

He looked quite dashing in his borrowed muggle suit as well, and she found herself staring at him more than once as they traveled to the small Cokesworth church hand in hand. Lily's stomach was bothered with nerves but James' firm hand in her own helped her stay calm as she entered the church where Petunia Evans would become an entirely new person.

Petunia looked neither angered nor happy that her sister had shown up (and with a stranger nonetheless) but Lily's mother cried with joy at the sight of her daughter. Lily's mother forced the girls to take a picture together and the only reason Lily smiled was because it was James to fretfully tried to figure out the muggle camera that her mother had handed him unknowingly.

"You press the black button!" Lily laughed at James who looked adorable as he fretfully tried to take a picture for Lily's crying mother.

"It's fine," Petunia finally demanded after three different flashes, "I'm sure one came out."

Lily's mother thanked James profusely and offered to arrange an extra plate at the dinner table so he could join the family. Petunia didn't look overjoyed at the thought. Lily's mother left the room suddenly, promising to be back soon as she was walking Petunia down the aisle. Lily, determined not to be left alone with Petunia, motioned for James to head for the door. Petunia only had eyes for James, glaring daggers at him as he turned his back.

In fact, as Lily left the bridal room, Petunia hitched onto Lily's arm to hiss in her ear, "He better not be a freak like you."

Lily blinked coolly and detached herself from her sister, looking sideways to see James was waiting kindly for her at the door. His hair was in disarray despite him combing it twice in the bus on the way to the chapel. His glasses were askew as he smiled and outstretched a hand to her. Lily's heart warmed.

"He's _exactly_ like me," Lily told her sister, "And you had better get used to him."

Petunia stared horrified as Lily walked over to James and took his outstretched hand.

"That didn't go too horribly." James muttered into her ear, "She didn't seem unhappy to see you."

"Yeah well she didn't look happy either." Lily whispered back as they took their seats in the chapel.

The ceremony was everything Petunia would want and the stout man named Vernon who held her heart even looked like he might cry. James gagged multiple times during their handwritten vows and rubbed Lily's back when Petunia's Maid of Honor stood up and recited how she and Petunia were practically sisters and how excited she was for Petunia to marry the man of her dreams.

"I just don't see it." James whispered as Petunia and Vernon kissed to seal their vows, "How did those two fall in love?"

At his side a beefy woman who had to be related to Vernon huffed, "Honestly, the two of you are being totally disrespectful."

James snapped at the woman, "Bugger of lady."

"The nerve." The woman snapped, standing up to clap with everyone else as petunia and Vernon walked hand in hand down the aisle.

James pulled Lily up to stand with everyone else. He had his hands placed on either of her shoulders and squeezed lightly more than once in support of her. Lily stared somberly at the back of Petunia's wedding dress, imagining that maybe one day, she would wear it and she'd have someone walking her down the aisle. Then Lily decided she wouldn't want that dress, it was petunia's dress now and represented a life Lily didn't want.

Petunia married the right man for her, got married in the right church, and wore the right dress. Petunia was similar to Lily's mother; in that she was happy with the route her life was leading her. It was a constant rotation of mothers and daughters, always marrying the perfect man to offer them a perfect house with perfect children and perfect dinner parties.

Lily's mother appeared to drive Lily and James to the reception hall where they were forced to watch Petunia share her first dance with Vernon. The wedding cake was cut and James was immediately disappointed.

"Aren't they supposed to smash cake on each others faces?" James whispered.

"That's too childish for a mature adult like Petunia." Lily muttered, not noticing that James had his fingers full of frosting that he lathered onto her cheek, causing her to laugh joyfully for the first time that night. James laughed too as he continued dotting her cheeks with the thick pink frosting. Lily tried to keep him at bay but he was smearing icing all over her.

Heads turned to look at their game and Petunia sent Lily a glare from the dance floor where she and Vernon were dancing slowly to violins. Lily immediately sobered and got a napkin to clean herself up.

"See?" she hissed at James as she wiped frosting off her cheek.

James helped by swiping some frosting with his clean fingers and licking them, "Remind me to never grow up."

By the end of the night Lily was leaning on James and swearing up and down that she'd never go to any wedding again, not even her own.

"Come on," James chuckled when she'd drank her third champagne, "Let's go."

James kept ahold of her hand as they said goodbye politely to Lily's mother (who invited James back for every Holiday Lily's ever heard of) and Petunia (who sniffed and walked away with a short wave). James walked away from the church with Lily's hands grasped firmly in his own.

As far as Lily was concerned, she agreed with James, she was determined to never grow up.

It seemed harder and harder the more she tried. Teachers were constantly reminding them about job applications, the younger students seemed more like preschoolers, and the sexual tension between her and James was putting Sasha's romance novels to shame.

"You just need to snog him already." Sasha said after a particularly embarrassing encounter where James wiped mashed potatoes off her cheek at dinner, "He'll probably thank you."

"I don't think snogging him is exactly appropriate." Lily hissed at Sasha.

"The pair of you are acting like first years." Sasha opposed, "I spoke to Sirius Black about—"

"You did what?!" Lily exclaimed, facing her friend in alarm.

Sasha put her hand up to stall Lily's hysterics; "He agreed that the best thing would be to shove the both of you into a broom closet during your late night castle rounds."

Lily forced a laugh, "Of course he thinks that!" she exclaimed, "Sirius Black is certifiably insane!"

"He'd resent that." A new voice entered the conversation and Lily spun to see Peter Pettigrew grinning at them both wickedly, "Now who are we shoving into a broom closet?"

"Lily and James." Sasha said unabashedly.

"Sasha!" Lily hissed, elbowing her friend.

Peter actually looked concerned, "Please don't do that—"

"Finally!" Lily raised her hands in the air, "A voice of reason."

"—Because Sirius and I have a bet going on to see who cracks first."

Lily's face fell and she put her hands up against her face and moaned loudly. Sasha chortled and high fived Peter all in one go. Lily prayed that once she graduated Hogwarts, she would make new friends, because her current options were lacking. Even with all her jokes about James and heated snogs in the library, Lily soon found that Sasha was nowhere as bad as Sirius Black himself.

It stared a week after James and Lily had returned from Petunia's wedding. Lily was sitting at the Gryffindor table with James and his friends while Sasha was in the hospital wing for a pepper-up potion for her cold. Owl Post came as it always did and Lily received another wedding invitation. She pushed it aside slightly, as she'd started doing whenever she got one, and continued eating her breakfast.

Sirius grabbed it and asked, "So you find anybody you'd like to change your name for?"

Lily had choked on her spoon and James slapped her helpfully on the back while she coughed and Sirius chortled. From that point on Sirius acted like Lily's mum each time they ended up around each other.

"Lily!" he would bellow to get her attention.

"Hi Sirius." Lily always sounded less than keen at his hints and pushes.

"So how's it going?" he would always sit dangerously close to her, grinning wickedly, "Got any plans after Hogwarts, any boyfriends your planning on marrying?"

"If I don't end up in Azkaban for murder first."

At first she'd played along but then Sirius started to get a bit more creative with his teasing.

"I saw you and James have rounds together later," Sirius called pleasantly to her one night in the common room, "did you change the rounds just to be with him?"

Or his personal favorite, "So when are you thinking of adding your name to that wedding list James told me about?"

Lily eventually got nasty tempered whenever Sirius was around, "Leave me be, you're worse than my mum."

And it was true, in Ms. Evans' last owl post she'd asked how _dear_ James was doing.

"I can set you up," Sirius wiggled his thick eyebrows, "I know a guy."

Lily sighed dramatically and looked up at the ceiling praying to grow old and be a spinster with eighty cats. Sirius grinned wickedly, knowing exactly just how much he was pestering her. It was like he had taken it as his one sworn duty to get James and Lily together. So much so that Lily finally resorted to talking to James about it.

She found the boy in question patrolling the third floor corridor at night alone, with his wand aloft as he walked back and forth across the hall. His blue sweater made him looked especially attractive and Lily got angry with herself for even thinking that. She was trying so hard to not look at him and see someone she cared deeply for more and more each day…despite his idiot friends.

Lily soured again, thinking of Sirius' aggravating advances.

"Hey." She demanded his attention a little harshly.

James turned on his heel and lowered his wand when he saw who it was, "Hey to you too." He smiled, "Why the foul mood? Receive another wedding invitation?"

"I—" she glared at him as she realized he was goading her, " _Yes probably_ , but that's not why I'm angry."

"What's the list up too now?" he teased, placing his wand in his back pocket as she stomped over to him.

She crossed her arms, staring up at him with a reproachful look, "James."

"I'd imagine forty couples at the rate you were going." He continued with a wicked gleam in his eyes.

" _James_."

"But if we're still counting pregnancies I think you should add Amelia Barry in Slytherin cause I heard she got—"

"James!" she stomped her foot and he snickered.

"Did you just stomp your foot at me?" he stepped forward so they were only inches apart.

"Yes." She said pointedly, taking a step back because his closeness was causing her heart to thump at abnormal speeds, "Tell Sirius to lay off me."

James tilted his head in confusion, "Sirius?"

"Yes." She loosened her shoulders a bit, realizing how uptight she was, "Tell him to leave me alone."

"What's he been _doing_ exactly?" James narrowed his eyes and stepped closer to her again, this time leaving no way for her to back up because her back was now against the cold stone of the castle.

"I mean nothing—everything—can't you just—" she blabbered on and James chuckled ominously, shaking his head as he gazed down at her.

"What if I told you," James whispered, reaching out with one hand to brush her red hair behind her shoulder, "That I knew _exactly_ what he was pestering you about?"

Lily's breath hitched in her throat and she stared open mouthed at James in disbelief, "You knew?!" she demanded, "He's been pestering me for weeks now and you _knew_?" she threw her hand out to smack him but he caught her hand and licked his lips as he brought it to her side.

"You see Evans," he somehow got even closer and she was unable to look away from his mesmerizing eyes, "I've had a bit of a crush on you, don't really know when it happened or why…but at your sister's wedding I knew I was doomed."

"Doomed?" Lily peeped, feeling her chest tighten with his words.

"As doomed as they come really." James replied, leaning down so that their noses were touching, "I came back that night telling my mates I had to stay far away from you because what daft idiot falls in love at sixteen?"

Lily had been trying so hard to figure out the answer to that very question. It was the reason she'd made the wedding list. It was the reason she'd examined all the couples and judged friends for. It was also the exact reason that she stood staring affectionately into James Potter's overwhelming eyes.

"But, all that aside," he murmured, "I'm definitely, one hundred percent sure that if I took a shot of firewhisky every time I thought about you then I'd end up in the Hospital."

Lily bit her lip and smiled as his forehead touched hers, "Git. That's my line."

James chuckled before pushing her chin up with two fingers so that she was forced to stare into his smoldering eyes, "I'm going to kiss you now."

As James' lips pressed against her own, influencing her mouth to reciprocate with so much force that James had to pull back for a moment to recover from her insistent kiss. She could feel his smile against her lips and could sense his warm hands wrap firmly around her waist to help lift her onto her tiptoes. The only thing she couldn't do was imagine an other world she'd rather be in than the one where James Potter held onto her firmly, like there was zero a care in the world as long as she was hugging him back.

James leaned into her, catching each movement of her lips with his own, not letting her mouth leave his. Lily found herself becoming more wound up in a tangle of legs and arms as James lavished her with kiss after adoring kiss. Every touch of his exploring hands was slowly bringing her to a sense of realization that _this_ is what people got married for—the ability to keep what they loved so unbelievably close.

Barely willing, Lily forced the kisses to slow and eventually wane.

James' chest was rising and falling heavily against her as they held each other close. Lily realized that perhaps love wasn't as grown up as she imagined because she was only sixteen but she was sure that she loved James Potter. She loved him for his looks. She loved him for his wit. She loved him for his honesty. It was impossible for her to think of a time in which she hadn't loved James in some way, or shape, or form.

As they held each other in the darkness and safety of the castle, they were just kids in love, but even their youthful mentality couldn't change their fate and the reality of growing up. Somewhere outside the walls of the castle, a war was brewing and James Potter and Lily Evans had a lot of growing up to do, until they didn't anymore.


End file.
